It reminded me of all the good side hustles I’ve tried. Some succeeded. Some failed. But with each attempt, I had a good story, a lesson, or tips to share.

For today, I thought it would be fun to share the good side hustles, i.e.. that ones that actually worked.

There are 15 side hustles I counted. The first 12, I was able to generate at least $1,000 of income in a month.

I’ve put them in order from largest to smallest with regards to earnings.

14 Good Side Hustles I’ve Tried To Make Extra Money

# 1) Investing

The # 1 way I’ve made money outside of a job has been investing.

Not day trading or betting on stocks. My strategy is simple –index investing.

What’s worked has been contributing to my 401(k), maximizing my IRA, and putting as much money as possible in index funds.

While I’d love to brag here about my successes with individual stocks. That’s only telling half the story. Because when I did hit a home run, I didn’t even have to pay taxes on it (due to loss carryovers).

# 2) Blogging

I started my first personal finance blog in 2009–built it up for 2.5 years and sold it.

It wasn’t a life-changing sum but my wife and I were able to take time off work to travel.

Blogging acted as the gateway to other ways of making money online. Once I built up the skills as a blogger, I got into other good side hustles like web design and freelance writing.

# 3) Freelance Web Design

For about 18 months, I was an active freelance web designer. The money was solid but I stopped to focus on this blog.

What lead me to become a web designer was the necessity as a PPC Manager.

What made this a good side hustle was that I was one of the early users of Unbounce. This allowed me to log hundreds of hours using the software before it really took off. I became the go-to-guy on Upwork for Unbounce landing pages.

# 4) Freelance Copywriting

Learning how to write copy was another “gateway” side hustle–it allowed me to acquire important skills which led to success with other side hustles.

I did a wide range of projects here from writing brochures, landing pages, and emails.

About The Author

R.J. Weiss is the founder and editor of The Ways To Wealth, a Certified Financial Planner™, husband and father of three. He's spent the last 10+ years writing about personal finance and has been featured in Forbes, Bloomberg, MSN Money, and other publications.

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